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Posted: 7/16/2011 10:26:40 PM EDT
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I used the new electric hot plate and large metal coffee can ( insulated externally with aluminum foil faced fiber glass duct board ) to pre-melt 10 muffin pan ingots .
I would refill the Lee electric bottom pour casting pot with melted lead from the coffee can , every time the Lee casting pot got to about 50% level . I cast a few hundred before lunch , but when I examined them , a LOT had runs that looked like cold pour . When I started up , after lunch , I turned up the temp on the Lee pot . after the mold got up to temp , the bullets started to look OK . I kept casting until about 03:00 PM . I had accumulated quite a few bullets & I was HOT . I shut down production can came inside the house to cool off . :-) I was casting 230 grain RNL lead bullets . These are from a Lee 6 cavity mold . The bullet is designed to have the nose shaped much like GI M2 Ball . They feed great . If a 1911 will feed Ball FMJ , the chances are very high it will feed these RNL bullets . I just hope they are big enough ? That is the reason the first batch of bullets ended up cold . I was trying to cast as cold as would work OK , in the effort to get as big a bullet as I could . All those rejects ended up back in the melt , after they had drained / dried . I always drop my bullets in a 5 gallon bucket of water . God bless Wyr |
I cast this bullet also. I have found that with a 6 gang mold you need a higher temperature than with 2 gang molds. I normally cast with 2 molds and alternate between molds. I cast my 45 ACP bullets on the soft side, and never quench them. I don't think it's needed at 750-800 fps. For more info on soft bullets go to Missouri Bullets page that I linked. I read it, tried it, and it works. 
They don't all come out good. 
I use a Lyman lube sizer. 
Here they are in formation. The one problem I've had with bullets cast from Lee molds is finding the correct top punch for my lube sizer. I had to modify the top punch so that it doesn't leave a mark on the bullet when I lube them. Same problem with the .311 bullets I cast. The SWC bullets are a no brainer. Will post more info on top punch tonight. |
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In 2009 I attended an auction of firearms and shooting stuff from the estate of a man that was a hard core reloader.
His casting rig was excellent. He used two RCBS furnaces one mounted above the other held in a frame that supported both furnaces. The upper pot fed the lower pot. It sold for more than I was willing to pay without knowing whether they were in working condition. This guy was a master caster, his bullets were beautiful. He cast for every firearm he owned, there were over 100 rifles and 200 handguns at the sale, and he had molds for everything. I managed to buy a couple of .22 and .30 caliber rifle bullet molds. I messed up on one bid for choice when the winning bidder in that round took all the molds I wanted! Casting here yesterday would probably earn a man a trip to the locked wing at the hospital. |
For the top punch I'm using a Lyman #374, got it from Midway #307-803. I had to open it up a little. Chucked it a drill press and placed some 400 grit sandpaper between a bullet and top punch while top punch was turning. Polished for a while then placed in sizer, it took several tries to get the top punch to not mark bullets. I use a .452 sizing die, and Lyman Orange Magic lube. 
Loaded ammo using these bullets. |
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